Freedom in the Firm Presentation copyright © 2000 by Barry Brownstein

Freedom in The Firm l “In most corporations we are captive to a view of human beings and organizations that takes away our effectiveness as managers and dehumanizes the workplace.” l “ To the extent that the existence of a thing is dependent on its organization as a complex adaptive system, that part of its existence must be free to operate.” l “… Freedom is “that condition in which the agents in a social system are unrestrained in their ability to act except by rules or principles that apply to the organization of a system as a whole- including those responsible for the rules.”” Freedom

McMaster’s Roots- John Locke (Two Treatises of Government) n Built on the ideas of Sophocles, Cicero and many others n people have rights before the existence of government (natural rights) n the purpose of government is to protect their rights n people are justified in dissolving governments that do not protect their rights.

‘Positivism’ as The Alternative Paradigm To Freedom (Natural Rights) l Law established by governmental authority l All rights are man-made l can be granted or taken away by man l ‘rights’ can advance ‘common good’ at the expense of individuals

Thomas Jefferson- Declaration Of Independence “We hold these truths to be self evident: that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with inherent and inalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness; that to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed…”

Rose Wilder Lane l Edited her Mother’s notes into The Little House on the Prairie books. l “The revolutionary basis (of this country) is recognition of the fact that human rights are natural rights, born in every human being with his life, and inseparable from his life; not rights and freedoms that can be granted by any power on earth.”

Why Is Freedom In The Firm Important l Simple rules are necessary for complex systems to emerge –maximizes ‘intelligence’ of firm l Coercion is unwise because “Complex intelligent systems are beyond out power of explanation and understanding at the level of detail and individual events.” l “Human beings are structurally coupled to their social environment. That means the actions that they take or payoffs they seek, tend to be within the values of the social system they find themselves in”